Last Resort: "Eight Bells" Review

Who's in charge on this island?

After Julian and his prisoners were sidelined last week, that situation was front and center in this episode, creating another tough – and ultimately fatal – situation for the Colorado crew.

It all got pretty horrific – it’s vague what Cortez did to appease Julian at one point and stop him from initially killing anyone, though it’s hard not to guess it was sexual. But what was clear was that her fellow prisoner, Brannan, was willing to put his life and hers over their fellow crewmember, when he directly named Redman as the one Julian should kill. It was a suitably gut-wrenching moment, as he was protecting Cortez, yet also himself, over the life of his “brother” and again demonstrates that Last Resort is not going to back down on putting these characters in situations no one would ever want to face.

In D.C., I was glad to see more of Bruce Davison’s Admiral Shepard, and one hell of an uneasy alliance with Kylie, as he called her “A parasite who traffics in war.” The plans for the Perseus being stolen from her add again to the conspiracy scenario, with the implication her own dad may be involved. Also, we finally got to physically see Jay Karnes after two episodes of hearing him. Of course, he was only onscreen briefly, an on Kylie's TV no less - in an amusingly gradual rollout for the character.

Far less enthralling were the James/Tani scenes, despite James’ amusing line, “I’m sorry your dad didn’t hate me more.” I like both actors -- Dichen Lachman did some terrific work on Dollhouse -- but Tani’s “My mom got sick and I’m stuck with my dad who I don’t get along with” storyline sticks out like a distracting sore thumb among the intrigue and tension of Last Resort. I hope she can somehow be better integrated as time goes on.

Putting Prosser back on the sub is good to see, aided by Marcus telling Prosser he still would take Prosser at his word not to retaliate against him – and the fact that Prosser seemed suitably stirred that Marcus would still trust him in that way. Plus, the continued hatred between Prosser and Daisy works well, even getting darkly humorous at times with her excellent retort, “You didn’t hang yourself with your shoelaces. We all have our disappointments”

The sequence where the Colorado had to avoid a series of depth charges was well done. With a TV budget, it’s not like they can have blockbuster movie style effects constantly. But while much of the action was only from the POV of those onboard the sub, there were enough actual shots of the sub in danger to convey the scenario, coupled with the work of the cast to sell the tension of the sub being bombarded from above, while in danger of colliding with a trench below.

Marcus essentially bending over for Julian was a troubling part of the episode – but the good thing is, it was meant to be troubling, and put him at true odds with Sam for the first time. Marcus’ worry that the Colorado can’t deal with battling Julian’s men in the midst of their other crisis is valid, but at same time… just how far can you push Marcus? One of his men was actually killed by Julian now, which makes Julian a true threat (to the Colorado and on the show), but also it makes Marcus look weak and even cowardly not to retaliate. The good news is, it’s clear the Last Resort writers aren’t ignoring this fact… even as I look forward to seeing just how Marcus finally gets his payback, at the “Time and place of my choosing.”

Lastly, I want to commend Sahr Ngaujah for his performance as the oh-so easily offended Julian, whose need to be respected -- he was so upset Marcus hadn't come to talk to him already! -- is what makes him so dangerous.